Cauliflower Crust Stromboli

April 16, 2014

This is me showing you that cauliflower crust is dope.
Dope as in awesome and nasty as in “Yah brah thats sik!”
Shaka sign dope and awesome and sik. Got it?
Because there’s really no end to what you (and I) can do with cauli crust. Like really. Pizza, calzone, pizzettes, hot pockets, garlic breadsticks and today Stromboli.Now, do you know what Stromboli is?
It’s a small island off the north coast of Sicily, containing one of the three active volcanoes in Italy (I've just wikipedied it.)
And it’s also a fantastic appetizer.
I was first introduced to it a couple of years ago at Scarpetta in Chelsea.
It’s part of their bread basket (I still ate bread back then, say what???) and I soon became obsessed with Stromboli. SO yummy.
In a nutshell, Stromboli is basically a pizza roll.
You roll pizza dough out into a rectangle, cover with sauce, top with meat and cheese, roll up, cut in some slats, bake and serve.
It’s just a different way to eat pizza.
It’s also different from a calzone. A calzone is just a pizza folded in half; a Stromboli it’s a rectangular pizza rolled.
People go nuts over Stromboli because it’s something they don’t see everyday.

When you make cauliflower crust pizza you become 100 times cooler because you served it instead of regular pizza.
If you make cauliflower crust Stromboli, then you become like 1000 times cooler.
Because Stromboli is 10 times cooler than pizza, and cauliflower crust is 100 times cooler than regular wheat dough. Hence, 10 x 100 = 1000. I’m good at math.
Shall we make some? Mmmmmmkay...
Start out by making our fail proof cauliflower crust pizza dough and spread into a rectangle on a lined baking sheet.

After baking it for the standard 10 minutes, spread tomato sauce over most of the dough, leaving a small border on one side.

Grate some mozzarella please! And sprinkle half over top of the sauce.

Now fish around your fridge for some meat. I had only ham, but pepperoni or salami would be a great add-on. Lay those slices out over the cheese.

Sprinkle the last of the cheese over top of the meat and that’s the filling! Wham bam slam!

Now carefully roll that baby up! Cut slats in the top, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and oregano.

Bake this bad boy 12 minutes. Wait a few minutes, then slice and serve.
It’s about at this time people start worshipping the ground you walk on because this is beyond good.
“Dope stuff brotha!”

Preheat oven to 450°F (220°C) and place a rack in the middle.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and liberally grease it with olive oil. Set aside.
In a food processor rice the cauliflower florets (it should be evenly chopped but not completely pulverized).
Transfer cauliflower rice (3 cups) to a microwave-safe dish and microwave on high for 8 minutes, until cooked.
Place the cauliflower rice in a tea towel and twist it to squeeze as much moisture as you can (I usually squeeze out over a cup of liquid). This is very important. The cauliflower rice needs to be dry, otherwise you’ll end up with mushy dough, impossible to roll into a stromboli.
Transfer the cauliflower rice to a mixing bowl, add egg, mozzarella, oregano, salt and pepper and mix well.
Spread cauliflower mixture onto the lined baking sheet and form into a large rectangle.
Place in the oven and bake for exactly 10 minutes (no more, no less, 10 minutes).
Remove from the oven and spread tomato sauce over most of the dough, leaving a 2-inch border on one side.
Spread half of the mozzarella, then the meat (I used ham), then the remaining cheese.
With a large spatula lift the longer sides of the crust and roll into stromboli shape (you may also use the parchment paper to help you do this!)
Flip them seam down and tuck/fold the shorter side to close the stromboli.
Cut slats in the top, and sprinkle with some grated Parmesan cheese and oregano.
Return to the oven and bake for an additional 12 minutes.
Wait a few minutes before you slice and serve.
And beware of all that raging ooey gooey cheese. Right out of the oven it’s thermonuclear hot. So, watch yourself.
Serve with extra sauce if you feel so inclined.

Cheesy baked deliciousness! You'll never believe that I still have tried cauliflower crust again after the initial failure with another recipe! Your's always looks mouthwatering, and I'm feeling totally inspired to finally try this out - cannot resist even 1 minute longer - need this for breakfast!

There was wayyyy too much math in that post for me. However, I think I understand what you're saying - not too good with numbers. I need to jump on this Stromboli business though, because the name is just SWEET BRA!

Mike, this stromboli is totally fly. I need it in my kitchen. Seriously, though, after all of these delicious cauliflower crust recipes that you keep pumping out, I think I need to give it a shot one of these days! I love my traditional pizza crust so much...but it has flour in it. #dontjudge

Okay, now if you figure out a way to make this crust work without the egg or tell me the best way to sub for it [flaxseed??]... then I might not worship the ground you walk on. But I think we could - or should, really - talk about getting you a cauliflower cookbook contract then :). Deal?!

Oh wow! I'm making this for dinner one day this week. How much water do I put into the microwave bowl with the cauliflower when I microwave it? And what are tea towels? Cauli crust.... Please God, let this turn out right for me.

I was a little dubious of the cauliflower crust (despite how good all the pics look), but I made this today and it was AWESOME! Thanks for all the great recipes- I think I'm about to be on a cauli-crust kick . . .

I tried this last night. I was expecting the crust to be more crispy, but my husband and I thought the texture more closely resembled a frittata. I squeezed the cauliflower to death and it was bone dry. Any thoughts on what I did wrong? Or is that how the crust should taste?

It should be a bit crispy, not like bread crust crispy, but definitely not like frittata (and that especially after it cools off a little).I'm thinking about the mozzarella you used; if it was super fresh and released a ton a liquid than it might it. I generally use Organic Valley shredded mozzarella and it works perfectly!

Made this tonight for my family (one of which is gluten-free). I followed the crust recipe exactly but filled it with pastrami, saurkraut, swiss chesse and light thousand island. A little labor-intensive but the family loved it! Thanks for the solid recipe.

tried this recipe and loved it. actually posted my adventure trying it on my blog and linked you to it. I hope it's ok! thank you so much for sharing and I will definitely be checking out and trying (and reviewing) more of your creations!

Great recipes. Wow Look so good, I have to try this now! I'm always hungry since I'm on a extremely strict paleo & candida diet no grains, sugar, legumes,fruits ,nuts, no dairy except yogurt barely anything with carbs starches. oh goshSeem like I cant eat anything.oh I don't eat pork nor beef as a lifestyle change from a decade ago. Have any recipes or websites that would make my life??!?. Snacks would be helpful too. Due to the lack of fulfilling meals and snacks I have crashed a couple times and ate anything sweet that I saw in my path like a deranged cookie monster please help thank you! 😌

Great recipes. Wow Look so good, I have to try this now! I'm always hungry since I'm on a extremely strict paleo & candida diet no grains, sugar, legumes,fruits ,nuts, no dairy except yogurt barely anything with carbs starches. oh goshSeem like I cant eat anything.oh I don't eat pork nor beef as a lifestyle change from a decade ago. Have any recipes or websites that would make my life??!?. Snacks would be helpful too. Due to the lack of fulfilling meals and snacks I have crashed a couple times and ate anything sweet that I saw in my path like a deranged cookie monster please help thank you! 😌

I made this tonight. My crust stuck to the pan (didn't have parchment paper) and made it very difficult to roll. But it did do it. Burnt my hands though squeezing the hot cauliflower. Any suggestions for someone like me who is too impatient to wait for it to cool?

How do you get the cauliflower crust to not stick on the parchment paper when you try to peel it off and roll it? We were unsuccessful in rolling it due to it sticking so we just did it open faced and cut what we could off the paper.

I have not tried to make this yet, but I have used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free pizza crust mix many times. This dough is extremely sticky and can only be handled with wet hands. I haven't tried rolling it, but I would suggest if you are going to try you might roll it between floured sheets of parchment paper (any GF flour will do). Good luck! I usually press it into a parchment lined and oiled sheet pan with wet hands. This recipe seems to be written for wheat based flour as you need to pre-bake the Bob's crust before you can top it.

sounds very cool but you gave me a very good idea use the cauliflower rice in stuffed peppers as my mom and I are allergic to rice and what the backing time as real good cook tend not to have a microwave as i have 3 ovens and no microwave my self

This was absolutely AMAZING! I'd marry you if I wasn't married already....seriously so simple and if I hadn't made it myself I would have sworn it was regular pizza crust. Can't wait to try some of your other recipes!

I have question. I'm a super taster and a super smeller. I hate the taste and smell of cauliflower cooking the regular way. How do you think I will do with this? However, with all the extra stuff on top of it, which I really love, I might have to give this a try. I don't have parchment paper though. We have this roll of non stick stuff for baking I bought on QVC. Its food safe and I use it for cookies all the time and they don't stick. Can I use that for this? I don't want to mess up the recipe by having it stick to anything. I'm willing to give it a try (cross your fingers I don't hurl because that's what happens when it hits my tastebuds) and let you know if my family and I liked it.

I really want to try to make this, as my husband has severe allergies and cannot have typical pizza crust. The only issue is he is also allergic to egg! I know right? Its crazy, we just found out so it has been difficult trying to find things to make. Is there anything I can use to substitute the egg in the crust?

I've successfully used a flax or chia seed egg (vegan egg replacement), just grind 1 tablespoon of chia or flax seeds into a powder, combine with 2.5 tablespoons of water and whisk, then leave for a few minutes to thicken. You can then add it into the rest of the mixture and it should act as a binding agent. Try whipping the chia egg a little bit to also give a bit of 'rise'. Hope that helps!

I really want to try to make this, as my husband has severe allergies and cannot have typical pizza crust. The only issue is he is also allergic to egg! I know right? Its crazy, we just found out so it has been difficult trying to find things to make. Is there anything I can use to substitute the egg in the crust?

I just made this and WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing. needless to say is was so tasty and did not last in my house. I will be doing this on a regular. Today i will try the grilled cheese cauliflower. THANK YOU

You don't really "roll" it because it is way too sticky! Just plop it on the baking sheet (with parchment paper sprayed with olive oil spray) and start patting it out. Depends on how big the head of cauliflower is, but I usually get it spread out about 2-3 inches from the sides of a standard cookie sheet. (I also bake my for 12-15 min before adding the ingredients even though he states "10 min, only 10 min" . I live in Colorado, and maybe the altitude makes a difference. Hope this helps! This is a super Yummy dish!!! I also put in my own favorite pizza toppings. (For low fat, I use low sodium diced tomatoes with some Italian seasonings added, low fat cheese, turkey pepperoni, green olives, and pepperocinis) YUMM!!

I was pretty skeptical after my 3 cups of cauli-rice shrunk to about 1 cup after squeezing all the liquid out. however it amazingly baked up and held together really well. we filled it with some tomato sauce and fresh roasted veggies, it was absolutely delish! will be making this on the regular! thank you!!

Can I make cauliflower crust without a food processor? I don't have one. I do have a kick butt blender and a Kitchen-Aid can I use those to make it? I'm scared, I've never tried to make cauliflower crust.

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